The trip to Nanjing (The sequel)
When my friend and I took bus to the school area he used to teach in, we pasted
an overwhelmingly strange bridge. It was later in the afternoon. In the twilightthe sky looked even hazier. Far below the bridge, you would see blocks of grey,
sooty industrial buildings as a start, and later changed to a long, iron-coloured river with the shadows of weather-beaten boats floating on it.
At that moment those spooky coal-coloured buildings reminded me of the moment when I read The Rainbow by D. H. Lawrence. The area where Ursula from the book hadbeen a teacher in my imagination wore a similar look as that generated by the drab sky and the weather-beaten concrete buildings. Even those statures along thebridge couldn’t ease off my feeling that I was Ursula in the novel.
It was strange to notice that Nanjing, though only some three hours by train from Shanghai, wore a totally different look either in regard to the weather or theoutlook of the city from Shanghai. The two days I had stayed in Nanjing it was
always hazy and humid. The visibility only got a bit better after three or four
o’clock in the afternoon. But even that you always felt everything was covered
with mist. When I climbed up to the top of Zijin Mountain with my friend, which
was 477 meters in height, we could hardly overlook the city. All looked blurry in the sun.
However, I had to confess that some parts of the city were impressively nice. Xuanwu Lake, and Zijing Mountain were only two out of quite a few examples. It wasstrange to see that the government in Nanjing didn’t make the city too commercial, whereas striving to boost up its economy. If the lake area and the mountainwere located in Shanghai, I imagine that by now the two areas would have becometrendy touristy places under the ministration of Shanghai cunning government officers. In addition to that, there were lovely wooden decking in the wood aroundthe lake and the mountain area. It reminded my friend of his unforgettable childhood, and me of the long-forgotten past where I was be wholly free from trafficnoise and reeky city pollution.
Also, when we took cable car from the top to the bottom of the highest mountain,
it was amazing to have an overall view of those adjoining mountains and hills.
There was nothing that you could hear but twigs occasionally breaking off the tree and the singing of the birds hidden in the trees. Even the movement of the cable cars indicated a feeling of simplicity and peacefulness, let alone those houses quietly situated at the foot of the mountains. I wished I could live in themonce in my life.
My friend said actually only after he moved to Shanghai did he start to get annoyed. I guess basically nothing could be perfect. In Nanjing he got quietness whereas was want for career development opportunities, whereas in Shanghai he got the convenience of everything but with the sacrifice of his life quality. For me I haven’t found a place with the availability of everything I deem important
yet. But maybe I needn’t to worry about it too much. After all, I have seen or
heard that what I wanted was not wholly unreachable. Every bit that I liked fromthe cities I had visited gave me hope and motivation to move on. And the peaceful lake and the tranquil mountain in Nanjing was certainly one of them.
